Communication system, method for controlling communication system, and program

ABSTRACT

In a communication system including a server and a plurality of communication terminals capable of communication with the server, based on a variety of parameters indicating the status of a space formed within a game playable by the user of each communication terminal over the communication system, the server transmits advisory information, which suggests the next action for the space, to the communication terminal. The communication terminal displays a screen including the received advisory information.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.15/585,856 filed May 3, 2017, which is a continuation of U.S.application Ser. No. 14/163,414 filed Jan. 24, 2014, which is based onand claims priority under 35 U.S.C. 119 from Japanese Patent ApplicationNo. 2013-17917 filed on Jan. 31, 2013, the entire contents of which areincorporated herein by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a communication system, a method forcontrolling a communication system, and a program.

BACKGROUND ART

City building simulation games allow users to create a city environmentwithin the game and develop the city. In such city building games, theuser installs and develops a variety of facilities and buildings withinthe game and deals with problems such as earthquakes, environmentalpollution, and the like (for example, see “SimCity”, Wikipedia (NPL 1)).

CITATION LIST Non-Patent Literature

-   NPL 1: “SimCity”, Wikipedia. Jan. 25, 2013.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION Technical Problem

In a conventional city building game, the user has numerous options, andthe game has no final objective. Therefore, in order to further developthe city, the user does not always know what action to take next.

Such games include a notification function to prompt the user to respondto cases such as the occurrence of a problem in the city, for example anearthquake. This notification, however, merely indicates the occurrenceof a problem and does not contribute to development of the city, whichis the objective of the game, even if the user addresses the problem.

Accordingly, the present invention has been conceived in light of theabove problems, and it is an object thereof to provide a communicationsystem, a method for controlling a communication system, and a programthat can prevent a situation in which the user does not know what to doby advising the user on what action to take next.

Solution to Problem

A communication system according to the present invention for resolvingthe above problems is a communication system including a server and aplurality of communication terminals capable of communication with theserver. Based on a variety of parameters indicating a status of a spaceformed by a user of each communication terminal within a game playableover the communication system, the server transmits advisory informationto the communication terminal, the advisory information suggesting anext action for the space. The communication terminal displays a screenincluding the advisory information received from the server.

In the communication system according to the present invention, theserver may calculate scoring information based on the variety ofparameters and transmit the scoring information and the advisoryinformation to the communication terminal, and the communicationterminal may display a screen further including content of the scoringinformation received from the server.

In the communication system according to the present invention, thescoring information may include a ranking based on a comparison withscoring information of other users.

In the communication system according to the present invention, theserver may identify an action that the user has not taken based on thevariety of parameters and transmit the advisory information to thecommunication terminal based on a result of identification and on thescoring information.

In the communication system according to the present invention, thevariety of parameters may indicate the status of a plurality of spacesfor a plurality of users.

A method for controlling a communication system according to the presentinvention is a method for controlling a communication system including aserver and a plurality of communication terminals capable ofcommunication with the server, including transmitting, by the server,based on a variety of parameters indicating a status of a space formedby a user of each communication terminal within a game playable over thecommunication system, advisory information to the communicationterminal, the advisory information suggesting a next action for thespace; and displaying, by the communication terminal, a screen includingthe advisory information received from the server.

The method for controlling a communication system according to thepresent invention may further include transmitting, by the server, basedon scoring information calculated from the variety of parameters, theadvisory information and the scoring information to the communicationterminal; and displaying, by the communication terminal, a screenfurther including content of the scoring information received from theserver.

In the method for controlling a communication system according to thepresent invention, the scoring information may include a ranking basedon a comparison with scoring information of other users.

In the method for controlling a communication system according to thepresent invention, the server may identify an action that the user hasnot taken based on the variety of parameters and transmit the advisoryinformation to the communication terminal based on a result ofidentification and on the scoring information.

In the method for controlling a communication system according to thepresent invention, the variety of parameters may indicate the status ofa plurality of spaces for a plurality of users.

A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to thepresent invention stores a program which, when executed by a computerfunctioning as a communication terminal in a communication systemcomprising a server and a plurality of communication terminals capableof communication with the server, causes the computer to performoperations including: receiving advisory information and scoringinformation from the server; and displaying a screen including contentof the advisory information and the scoring information received fromthe server.

Advantageous Effect of Invention

The communication system, method for controlling a communication system,and program according to the present invention can prevent a situationin which the user does not know what to do by advising the user on whataction to take next.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

The present invention will be further described below with reference tothe accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a communication system according to anembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 illustrates users' city information in an embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 3 is an example of a scoring result screen in an embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 4 is an example of a scoring result screen in an embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 5 is an example of a scoring result screen in an embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating operations by the communicationsystem according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is an example of a main menu screen in an embodiment of thepresent invention; and

FIG. 8 is an example of a friend list screen in an embodiment of thepresent invention.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

The following describes an embodiment of the present invention.

Embodiment

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a communication system according to anembodiment of the present invention. The communication system includes aserver 1 and a communication terminal 2. For the sake of simplicity inFIG. 1, only one communication terminal 2 is shown, yet thecommunication system may include a plurality of communication terminals2 for a plurality of users.

The server 1 includes a server communication unit 10, a scoring unit 11,an advice selection unit 12, a memory unit 13, and a server control unit14.

The server communication unit 10 communicates with the communicationterminal 2 over a wireless or wired connection.

The scoring unit 11 scores users' city information 130 stored in thememory unit 13 to create scoring information 131. Scoring as used hererefers, for example, to calculating a score, for a predetermined area,with a predetermined computation using a plurality of parametersincluded in the users' city information 130.

With reference to FIG. 2, the users' city information 130 is nowdescribed. The users' city information 130 includes informationnecessary for game progress and user information (users' cityinformation 130 a), as well as information on a variety of parameters orthe like indicating the status of the user's city (users' cityinformation 130 b). In the present embodiment, the users' cityinformation 130 a includes information on a user ID 1300 identifying auser, a count 1301 of resolved resident concerns, a count 1302 ofcleared quests, and a structure count 1303 of a variety of structuresthat have been installed in the user's city. The users' city information130 preferably includes a friend user ID 1304 identifying a friend user,described below, and a time and date 1305 of previous scoring. Asparameters related to structures, the users' city information 130 bincludes an income value 1306, a fun value 1307, a convenience value1308, and a beauty value 1309. Specific examples of information used forscoring have been listed, yet the information included in the users'city information 130 is not limited to these examples. For example, theusers' city information 130 may include information such as the level oramount of capital of the user's city, the amount of material, theexperience points necessary to raise the city's level, or the like.

The count 1301 of resolved resident concerns is the number of requestsor the like, from residents of the city in the game, of whichnotification has been provided and which the user has addressed. Thecount 1302 of cleared quests is the number of problems (quests),occurring in the game, that the user has resolved.

The structure count 1303 is the number of business facilities, such as ashop, a bowling alley, or the like; decorative facilities such as an artobject or the like; community facilities such as a post office; weeds,scrub brush, roads, and the like. For each business facility, the incomevalue 1306 indicating the income for using the facility for one hour,the fun value 1307 indicating how fun the facility is, the beauty value1309 indicating the beauty of the facility, and the like are determinedin advance. For each decorative facility, the fun value 1307, the beautyvalue 1309, and the like are determined in advance. For each communityfacility, the convenience value 1308 indicating how convenient thefacility is, the beauty value 1309, and the like are determined inadvance. For weeds, scrub brush, roads, and the like, the beauty value1309 and the like are determined in advance. Note that the fun value1307 of each facility may be undisclosed to the user.

The explanation now returns to FIG. 1. The scoring information 131 isinformation indicating the result of the scoring unit 11 scoring theusers' city information 130 for each predetermined indicator. In thepresent embodiment, the scoring information 131 includes the score foreach of the indicators of “happy”, “wealthy”, “fun”, “beautiful”,“convenient”, and “balanced”, as well as the total of these scores, yetthe scoring information 131 is not limited to these values.

The score for “happy” is calculated based on the total of the count 1301of resolved resident concerns and the count 1302 of cleared quests. Thescore for “wealthy” is calculated based on the total of the income value1306 of each business facility. In greater detail, the calculation isperformed by multiplying the income value 1306 associated with eachbusiness facility by the count 1303 of the corresponding businessfacility. The score for “fun” is calculated based on the total of thefun value 1307 of each business facility and decorative facility. Ingreater detail, the calculation is performed by multiplying the funvalue 1307 associated with each business facility and decorativefacility by the count 1303 of the corresponding business facility ordecorative facility. The score for “beautiful” is calculated based onthe count 1303 of business facilities, decorative facilities, andweeds/scrub brush, and on the placement of roads. In greater detail, thecalculation is performed by multiplying the beauty value 1309 associatedwith each structure by the corresponding structure count 1303. The scorefor “convenient” is calculated based on the total of the conveniencevalue 1308 associated with each community facility. In greater detail,the calculation is performed by multiplying the convenience value 1308associated with each community facility by the count 1303 of thecorresponding community facility. The score for “balanced” is calculatedbased on the variation between the scores of the above five indicators.In greater detail, the standard deviation of each score is subtractedfrom a predetermined number.

The scoring information 131 preferably further includes overall rankinginformation and neighborhood ranking information that are based on acomparison with the scoring information 131 pertaining to other usersapart from the present user. The overall ranking information indicatesthe score ranking of the present user among all users playing the game.The neighborhood ranking information indicates the score ranking of thepresent user among a predetermined user group composed of a plurality ofusers. This user group is composed, for example, of the present user andother users (friend users) that have performed friend registrationmutually with the present user.

Based on the scoring information 131, the advice selection unit 12selects advisory information 132 that suggests the next action for thecity. In greater detail, the advice selection unit 12 determines whichindicator has the lowest score based on the scoring information 131 andselects advisory information 132 that specifies the indicator with thelowest score and a measure to take in order to raise the score of theindicator. For example, when the score of the indicator “fun” is thelowest, the facility with the highest fun value 1307 is presented, andthe user is encouraged to take the measure of installing the facility.

The advice selection unit 12 preferably identifies a facility that theuser has not installed based on the users' city information 130 andselects the advisory information 132 based on the result ofidentification and on the scoring information 131. In greater detail,the advice selection unit 12 selects the advisory information 132 thatspecifies a measure encouraging the user to install the facility withthe highest fun value 1307 among the facilities that have not beeninstalled. By thus identifying an action that the user has not yet takenand selecting advisory information 132 based on the result ofidentification, it is possible to prevent an action that the user hasalready taken from being shown as the measure, thereby improving theusefulness of the advisory information 132.

The memory unit 13 stores the users' city information 130 and aplurality of sets of advisory information 132 in advance. Due to controlby the server control unit 14, the memory unit 13 also stores thescoring information 131 created by the scoring unit 11.

The server control unit 14 performs a variety of control in the server1. For example, via the server communication unit 10, the server controlunit 14 receives a city scoring request by the user and the user ID fromthe communication terminal 2. By referring to the received user ID andthe users' city information 130 stored in the memory unit 13, the servercontrol unit 14 identifies the user pertaining to the scoring request.The server control unit 14 also transmits the scoring information 131and the advisory information 132 to the communication terminal 2 via theserver communication unit 10.

The server control unit 14 determines whether a scoring condition issatisfied for the received scoring request. The scoring condition is,for example, one scoring request per day from the same user. For thesecond and subsequent scoring request on the same day, the servercontrol unit 14 determines that the scoring condition is not satisfied.In greater detail, the server control unit 14 refers to the users' cityinformation 130 and determines that the scoring condition is notsatisfied when one day has not passed since the time and date 1305 ofprevious scoring. The server control unit 14 also transmits anindication that scoring is not being performed to the communicationterminal 2 via the server communication unit 10. The scoring conditionis not limited to the above-described condition based on a timeconstraint and may, for example, be whether a predetermined problem inthe game has been resolved.

The communication terminal 2 includes a terminal communication unit 20,a display unit 21, an operation unit 22, and a terminal control unit 23.

The terminal communication unit 20 communicates with the server 1 over awireless or wired connection.

The display unit 21 displays a variety of screens in a game. The displayunit 21 displays a screen based on the scoring information 131 and theadvisory information 132 received from the server 1. When an indicationthat scoring is not being performed is received from the server 1, thedisplay unit 21 also displays that the scoring condition is notsatisfied and that scoring is not being performed.

The operation unit 22 is configured with buttons, a touch panel, or thelike, receives a user operation for the game, and inputs the operationinto the terminal control unit 23. In the explanation below, theoperation unit 22 is assumed to be configured with a touch panel.

The terminal control unit 23 performs a variety of control in thecommunication terminal 2. For example, the terminal control unit 23transmits a city scoring request and the user ID to the server 1 via theterminal communication unit 20. The terminal control unit 23 alsoreceives the scoring information 131 and the advisory information 132from the server 1 via the terminal communication unit 20.

With reference to FIGS. 3, 4, and 5, a scoring result screen 210displayed on the display unit 21 of the communication terminal 2 in anembodiment of the present invention is described. The scoring resultscreen 210 includes a city score tab 2100, an overall rank tab 2101, aneighborhood rank tab 2102, and a close button 2103.

The city score tab 2100, the overall rank tab 2101, and the neighborhoodrank tab 2102 form an input interface to receive user input forswitching the content of the scoring result screen 210. When the userselects one of these tabs by tapping it, the content corresponding tothe tab is displayed on the scoring result screen 210.

The close button 2103 is an input interface to receive user input forclosing the scoring result screen 210 that is being displayed. When theuser taps the close button 2103, the scoring result screen 210 closes,and display of the display unit 21 switches, for example, to a main menuscreen 211 illustrated in FIG. 7.

FIG. 3 is an example of the scoring result screen 210 when the cityscore tab 2100 is selected. The scoring result screen 210 includes ascore graph 2100 a, a scoring result 2100 b, a character 2100 c, and acomment section 2100 d.

The score graph 2100 a is an image of a radar chart visuallyrepresenting the score of each indicator in the scoring information 131received from the server 1. In the radar chart, the “balanced” indicatoris not represented. Note that the score graph 2100 a is not limited tothe above-described radar chart, but may also, for example, be an imageof a bar graph, a line graph, or the like.

Based on the scoring information 131 received from the server 1, thescoring result 2100 b numerically represents the score of eachindicator, the total number of points, which is the sum of the scores,and the neighborhood rank and overall rank for the total number ofpoints.

The character 2100 c is an image of a character that presents theinformation displayed in the comment section 2100 d to the user. Thecomment section 2100 d displays information based on the advisoryinformation 132 received from the server 1. Specifically, in FIG. 3, thecomment section 2100 d displays that the indicator with the lowest scoreis “fun” and that the measure of installing a game center or bowlingalley should be taken.

FIG. 4 is an example of the scoring result screen 210 when the overallrank tab 2101 is selected. The scoring result screen 210 includes a topdisplay portion 2101 a, a nearby display portion 2101 b, and a cityvisit button 2101 c.

The top display portion 2101 a is a ranking, among all users, of thetotal score based on the scoring information 131 and displays the totalscore and rank for the top ten users.

The nearby display portion 2101 b is a ranking of the total score basedon the scoring information 131 and displays the total score and rank ofthe present user (“You” in FIG. 4) and other nearby users.

The city visit button 2101 c is an input interface to receive user inputfor displaying the corresponding user's city. The city visit button 2101c is displayed in correspondence with each user displayed on the scoringresult screen 210. When the user taps the city visit button 2101 c,display of the display unit 21 switches to a screen displaying thecorresponding user's city.

FIG. 5 is an example of the scoring result screen 210 when theneighborhood rank tab 2102 is selected. The scoring result screen 210includes a friend display portion 2102 a, a user display portion 2102 b,a scrollbar 2102 c, and a city visit button 2102 d. Since the city visitbutton 2102 d has the same structure as the city visit button 2101 c inFIG. 4, a description thereof is omitted.

The friend display portion 2102 a is a ranking, among the user group offriend users, of the total score based on the scoring information 131and displays the total score and rank for each friend user. When theuser swipes the friend display portion 2102 a or slides the scrollbar2102 c, display of the total score and rank of all of the friend usersis scrolled.

The user display portion 2102 b displays the total score and the rank ofthe present user among the friend users.

In FIGS. 4 and 5, an image visually displaying the present user's rank,such as a distribution map or the like, may be further displayed.

With reference to FIG. 6, operations by the communication systemaccording to an embodiment of the present invention are now described.

First, the terminal control unit 23 of the communication terminal 2transmits a city scoring request and the user ID to the server 1 via theterminal communication unit 20 (step S1).

Next, by referring to the received user ID and the users' cityinformation 130 stored in the memory unit 13, the server control unit 14of the server 1 identifies the user pertaining to the scoring request(step S2).

The server control unit 14 then determines whether a scoring conditionis satisfied for the received scoring request (step S3). When thescoring condition is determined to be satisfied in step S3 (step S3:Yes), processing proceeds to step S4. On the other hand, when thescoring condition is determined not to be satisfied in step S3 (step S3:No), processing proceeds to step S9.

When the scoring condition is determined to be satisfied in step S3, thescoring unit 11 scores the users' city information 130 stored in thememory unit 13 to create scoring information 131 (step S4).

Next, the server control unit 14 stores the scoring information 131created by the scoring unit 11 in the memory unit 13 (step S5).

Next, based on the scoring information 131, the advice selection unit 12selects advisory information 132 (step S6). The advice selection unit 12preferably identifies a facility that the user has not installed basedon the users' city information 130 and selects the advisory information132 based on the result of identification and on the scoring information131.

Next, the server control unit 14 transmits the scoring information 131and the advisory information 132 to the communication terminal 2 via theserver communication unit 10 (step S7).

Next, the display unit 21 of the communication terminal 2 displays thescoring result screen 210 based on the scoring information 131 and theadvisory information 132 received from the server 1 (step S8).

On the other hand, when the scoring condition is determined not to besatisfied in step S3, the server control unit 14 transmits an indicationthat scoring is not being performed to the communication terminal 2 viathe server communication unit 10 (step S9).

Next, the display unit 21 of the communication terminal 2 displays theindication that the scoring condition is not satisfied and that scoringis not being performed (step S10).

FIG. 7 is an example of the main menu screen 211 displayed on thedisplay unit 21 of the communication terminal 2. The main menu screen211 includes a city display portion 2110, a parameter display portion2111, menu icons 2112, and a close button 2113.

The city display portion 2110 displays an image showing the appearanceof the user's city.

The parameter display portion 2111 displays predetermined parametersbased on the users' city information 130. For example, parameter displayportion 2111-1 displays the city's level. Parameter display portion2111-2 displays the amount of capital in the city. Parameter displayportion 2111-3 displays the amount of material in the city. Parameterdisplay portion 2111-4 displays the experience points necessary to raisethe city's level.

The menu icons 2112 are an input interface to receive user input forswitching between screens displaying predetermined informationcorresponding to the icons. When the user taps one of the menu icons2112, display of the display unit 21 switches to the screen displayinginformation corresponding to the tapped menu icon 2112. For example,when the user taps menu icon 2112-1, display of the display unit 21switches to the scoring result screen 210. When the user taps menu icon2112-3, display of the display unit 21 switches to a friend list screen212, described below.

The close button 2113 is an input interface to receive user input forhiding display of the menu icons 2112 that are being displayed. When theuser taps the close button 2113, display of the menu icons 2112 and theclose button 2113 is hidden.

FIG. 8 is an example of the friend list screen 212 displayed on thedisplay unit 21 of the communication terminal 2. The friend list screen212 displays a list of friend users that are targeted for neighborhoodranking. The friend list screen 212 includes friends' name displayportions 2120, delete friend buttons 2121, friends' city icons 2122, ascrollbar 2123, a friend count display portion 2124, a close button2125, and a parameter display portion 2126. Since the parameter displayportion 2126 has the same structure as the parameter display portion2111 in FIG. 7, a description thereof is omitted.

The friends' name display portion 2120 displays the names of friendusers in the game. The delete friend button 2121 is an input interfaceto receive user input for canceling the friend registration of thecorresponding friend user. The friends' city icon 2122 is an imageshowing the appearance of the corresponding friend user's city. When theuser swipes the friend list screen 212 or slides the scroll bar 2123,display of all of the friend users is scrolled.

The friend count display portion 2124 displays the number of friendusers that the user has registered and the upper limit on the number offriend users that can be registered.

The close button 2125 is an input interface to receive user input forclosing the friend list screen 212 that is being displayed. When theuser taps the close button 2125, the friend list screen 212 closes, anddisplay of the display unit 21 switches, for example, to the main menuscreen 211.

In the communication system according to the present invention, theserver 1 thus scores the user-created city for a predetermined area andadvises the user on the next action for the city, whereby the user canlearn of an effective action for developing the city. Since the user canrepeatedly receive advice from the server 1 and further develop thecity, the user's interest in the game can be maintained. Furthermore, byscoring the cities of other users and presenting a city ranking thatshows a comparison with other users, the user can be motivated todevelop the city in order to improve the ranking. By using the rankingdisplay as an opportunity for making the display of other users' citiespossible, the user can also refer to how other users build their cities.

Modification

The following describes a modification of the present invention. In theabove-described embodiment, the server 1 scores the users' cityinformation 130 of the present user to create one set of scoringinformation 131, yet in this modification, the server 1 scores aplurality of sets of users' city information 130 pertaining to aplurality of users to create one set of scoring information 131. Theplurality of users is, for example, a user group composed of a user andthe user's friend users. With this approach, in cases such as when asingle user's city and the cities of the user's friend users areintegrated into one large city, the server 1 can score the large cityand offer advice.

Furthermore, in this modification, the advice selection unit 12identifies a facility that no user has installed based on the pluralityof sets of users' city information 130 and selects the advisoryinformation 132 based on the result of identification and on the scoringinformation 131. With this approach, an action that none of the usershas taken can be presented as a measure to take, thereby improving theusefulness of the advisory information 132.

According to the communication system of the modification to theembodiment, a plurality of users forming a user group can be newlymotivated to cooperate in developing their cities.

Although the present invention has been described based on the drawingsand embodiment, it should be noted that various changes andmodifications will be apparent to those skilled in the art based on thepresent disclosure. Therefore, such changes and modifications are to beunderstood as included within the scope of the present invention.

For example, in the above-described embodiment, the advice selectionunit 12 determines which indicator has the lowest score based on thescoring information 131 and selects advisory information 132 thatspecifies the indicator with the lowest score and a measure to take inorder to raise the score of the indicator, yet the present invention isnot limited in this way. For example, the advice selection unit 12 maydetermine which indicator has the highest score based on the content ofthe indicators in the scoring information 131 and select advisoryinformation 132 that specifies the indicator with the highest score anda measure to take in order to lower the score of the indicator.Furthermore, during a limited-time event or the like in the game, a newindicator for completion of an event objective may be established, andspecification of a measure for increasing the score of this indicatormay be prioritized.

In the above-described embodiment, an example of a city buildingsimulation game was described, yet the present invention is not limitedin this way. Instead of a city, the space that the user forms within thegame may be any space within the game, such as a country, region,garden, ranch, farm, store, or the like.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST

-   -   1: Server    -   2: Communication terminal    -   10: Server communication unit    -   11: Scoring unit    -   12: Advice selection unit    -   13: Memory unit    -   14: Server control unit    -   20: Terminal communication unit    -   21: Display unit    -   22: Operation unit    -   23: Terminal control unit    -   130 (130 a, 130 b): Users' city information    -   131: Scoring information    -   132: Advisory information    -   210: Scoring result screen    -   211: Main menu screen    -   212: Friend list screen    -   1300: User ID    -   1301: Count of resolved resident concerns    -   1302: Count of cleared quests    -   1303: Structure count    -   1304: Friend user ID    -   1305: Time and date of previous scoring    -   1306: Income value    -   1307: Fun value    -   1308: Convenience value    -   1309: Beauty value    -   2100: City score tab    -   2101: Overall rank tab    -   2102: Neighborhood rank tab    -   2103: Close button    -   2100 a: Score graph    -   2100 b: Scoring result    -   2100 c: Character    -   2100 d: Comment section    -   2101 a: Top display portion    -   2101 b: Nearby display portion    -   2101 c: City visit button    -   2102 a: Friend display portion    -   2102 b: User display portion    -   2102 c: Scrollbar    -   2102 d: City visit button    -   2110: City display portion    -   2111: Parameter display portion    -   2112: Menu icon    -   2113: Close button    -   2120: Friends' name display portion    -   2121: Delete friend button    -   2122: Friends' city icon    -   2123: Scrollbar    -   2124: Friend count display portion    -   2125: Close button    -   2126: Parameter display portion

The invention claimed is:
 1. A server comprising: a communication unitconfigured to communicate with a plurality of communication terminalsfor a plurality of users; a memory configured to store one or moreparameters related to a status of a virtual space in a game for eachuser; and a controller configured to make a determination of a facilitywhich has not been arranged in a first virtual space of a first userduring the game, the determination being made prior to selection of thefacility by the first user and made based on the one or more parametersrelated to the status of the first virtual space of the first user,wherein the one or more parameters include a level of the first virtualspace and a number of facilities already arranged in the first virtualspace, generate advisory information related to the facility, theadvisory information encouraging the first user to arrange the facilityas a next action in order to contribute to development of the firstvirtual space, transmit the generated advisory information related tothe facility to a first communication terminal of the first user fordisplay of the advisory information, and cause a first screen includingthe generated advisory information to be displayed on the firstcommunication terminal.
 2. The server according to claim 1, wherein thecontroller is further configured to generate ranking information rankingthe plurality of users according to a numerical value indicating astatus of each user, transmit the generated ranking information to thefirst communication terminal of the first user, and cause a rankingscreen including the generated ranking information to be displayed onthe first communication terminal.
 3. The server according to claim 2,wherein the ranking screen is one of a second screen displaying aranking of top scoring users among the plurality of users, and a thirdscreen displaying a ranking of the first user among friend users thatare friends of the first user among the plurality of users.
 4. Theserver according to claim 3, wherein the ranking screen includes aninput interface by which the first user switches between the second andthird screens.
 5. The server according to claim 2, wherein the generatedranking information ranks a plurality of groups each including a subsetof the plurality of users, and the ranking screen displays a ranking ofthe plurality of groups.
 6. The server according to claim 2, wherein theranking screen includes an input interface corresponding to a secondvirtual space of a second user, and operation of the input interface bythe first user causes display on the first communication terminal toswitch from the ranking screen to a corresponding user screen displayingthe second virtual space of the second user.
 7. A communication terminalcomprising: a communication unit configured to communicate with a serverthat communicates with a plurality of communication terminals for aplurality of users; a controller configured to receive, via thecommunication unit, advisory information related to a facility which hasnot been arranged in a first virtual space of a first user during agame, the advisory information being generated by the server based on adetermination of the facility, wherein the determination is made priorto selection of the facility by the first user and made based on one ormore parameters related to a status of the first virtual space of thefirst user, the one or more parameters including a level of the firstvirtual space and a number of facilities already arranged in the firstvirtual space, and the advisory information encourages the first user toarrange the facility as a next action in order to contribute todevelopment of the first virtual space; and a display configured todisplay a first screen including the generated advisory information. 8.The communication terminal according to claim 7, wherein the controlleris further configured to receive, via the communication unit, rankinginformation ranking the plurality of users according to a numericalvalue indicating a status of each user, and the display is furtherconfigured to display a ranking screen including the rankinginformation.
 9. The communication terminal according to claim 8, whereinthe ranking screen is one of a second screen displaying a ranking of topscoring users among the plurality of users, and a third screendisplaying a ranking of the first user among friend users that arefriends of the first user among the plurality of users.
 10. Thecommunication terminal according to claim 9, wherein the ranking screenincludes an input interface by which the first user switches between thesecond and third screens.
 11. The communication terminal according toclaim 8, wherein the ranking information ranks a plurality of groupseach including a subset of the plurality of users, and the rankingscreen displays a ranking of the plurality of groups.
 12. Thecommunication terminal according to claim 8, wherein the ranking screenincludes an input interface corresponding to a second virtual space of asecond user, and operation of the input interface by the first usercauses the display to switch from the ranking screen to a correspondinguser screen displaying the second virtual space of the second user. 13.A non-transitory computer readable recording medium having storedthereon instructions to be executed on a computer of a firstcommunication terminal of a first user, the instructions causing thecomputer to perform the steps of: communicating with a server thatcommunicates with a plurality of communication terminals for a pluralityof users including the first communication terminal of the first user;receiving advisory information related to a facility which has not beenarranged in a first virtual space of the first user during a game, theadvisory information being generated by the server based on adetermination of the facility, wherein the determination is made priorto selection of the facility by the first user and made based on one ormore parameters related to a status of the first virtual space of thefirst user, the one or more parameters including a level of the firstvirtual space and a number of facilities already arranged in the firstvirtual space, and the advisory information encourages the first user toarrange the facility as a next action in order to contribute todevelopment of the first virtual space; and displaying a first screenincluding the generated advisory information.
 14. The non-transitorycomputer readable recording medium according to claim 13, wherein theinstructions cause the computer to further perform the steps of:receiving ranking information ranking the plurality of users accordingto a numerical value indicating a status of each user; and displaying aranking screen including the ranking information.
 15. The non-transitorycomputer readable recording medium according to claim 14, wherein theranking screen is one of a second screen displaying a ranking of topscoring users among the plurality of users, and a third screendisplaying a ranking of the first user among friend users that arefriends of the first user among the plurality of users.
 16. Thenon-transitory computer readable recording medium according to claim 15,wherein the ranking screen includes an input interface by which thefirst user switches between the second and third screens.
 17. Thenon-transitory computer readable recording medium according to claim 14,wherein the ranking information ranks a plurality of groups eachincluding a subset of the plurality of users, and the ranking screendisplays a ranking of the plurality of groups.
 18. The non-transitorycomputer readable recording medium according to claim 14, wherein theranking screen includes an input interface corresponding to a secondvirtual space of a second user, and operation of the input interface bythe first user causes display to switch from the ranking screen to acorresponding user screen displaying the second virtual space of thesecond user.
 19. A method comprising: storing one or more parametersrelated to a status of a virtual space in a game for each of a pluralityof users; making a determination of a facility which has not beenarranged in a first virtual space of a first user during the game, thedetermination being made prior to selection of the facility by the firstuser and made based on the one or more parameters related to the statusof the first virtual space of the first user, wherein the one or moreparameters include a level of the first virtual space and a number offacilities already arranged in the first virtual space; generatingadvisory information related to the facility, the advisory informationencouraging the first user to arrange the facility as a next action inorder to contribute to development of the first virtual space; andcausing a first screen including the generated advisory information tobe displayed.
 20. The method according to claim 19, further comprisinggenerating ranking information ranking the plurality of users accordingto a numerical value indicating a status of each user; and causing aranking screen including the generated ranking information to bedisplayed.
 21. The method according to claim 20, wherein the rankingscreen is one of a second screen displaying a ranking of top scoringusers among the plurality of users, and a third screen displaying aranking of the first user among friend users that are friends of thefirst user among the plurality of users.
 22. The method according toclaim 21, wherein the ranking screen includes an input interface bywhich the first user switches between the second and third screens. 23.The method according to claim 20, wherein the generated rankinginformation ranks a plurality of groups each including a subset of theplurality of users, and the ranking screen displays a ranking of theplurality of groups.
 24. The method according to claim 20, wherein theranking screen includes an input interface corresponding to a secondvirtual space of a second user, and operation of the input interface bythe first user causes display to switch from the ranking screen to acorresponding user screen displaying the second virtual space of thesecond user.